Baby wrote the film to answer the call of Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI to help spread God’s word, love and mercy in this The Year of Faith. She got Gigi Javier-Alfonso, the chancellor of the UP Open University and Gawad Urian chair, to direct the movie. Gigi has helmed many TV dramas and short films but this is her first full length film.
“Gigi and I have worked before in several projects together and she’s a good friend,” says Baby. “I know she’s perfect for this project as it’s about strong women and she’s one herself. This is a film with many characters, like my favorite Hollywood films, ‘Babel’ and ‘Crash’. They have the same structure with interwoven stories and I enjoyed putting the characters together.”
“Baby is reflected in the characters she wrote for the film,” says Gigi. “Not the usual martyr types ang mga babae rito. They fight for what they want and they’re ready to face the consequences.”
Lani Mercado plays a two-timing wife in “Flames of Love”. She’s a doctor who’s married with two kids to a professor, Christopher de Leon, but is also having an affair with another doctor, Alvin Anson.
Valerie is a young woman raped by her drunken stepfather Ronnie Lazaro, with Jaclyn Jose as her unsuspecting mom.
Dina Bonnevie is an art enthusiast who dumps her husband, Ricky Davao, when she finds out he is cheating on her. The ultimate message of the film is that we may all be sinners but God is always merciful and just waiting for us to return to Him and renew our faith. The film opens in theatres on December 12, 2012 or 12/12/12, released by Solar Entertainment. Those who complain that local films these days are always about infidelity and “kabits” or mistresses should support this inspiring family drama fostering positive values about relationships and forgiveness.
